The way things are going for the No. 25 Lady Lions on the road these days, the tied score at halftime yesterday was good enough to evoke a nice chuckle.

In its previous three away games, Penn State (16-8, 11-2 Big Ten) started the second half trailing by an average of 10 points.

Against Illinois (13-10, 5-8) Penn State used another strong second half to erase a rough first 20 minutes and won 63-56, at Assembly Hall, thanks to 20 points from Jess Strom.

"I walked in. They were all quiet, I said, 'This is the first time we've been tied at halftime on a road game,' and they all started to laugh," Penn State coach Rene Portland said on the Penn State Sports Network. "There's a lot of pressure on them right now, and we're certainly not gonna make it any easier on ourselves. We certainly have to work and get the job done. We have 18- to 22-year-old kids so there's a lot for them to digest right now, but this is a major, major win for the quest we have for a Big Ten title."

Strom was sent to the bench with four minutes left in the first half after picking up her third foul. With zero points and one assist before the half, the senior guard scored all of her points in the deciding half, nine of which came from the foul line.

"I just had to be aware of it," Strom said. "I knew I had three fouls. I couldn't go for a lot of steals, I couldn't be that aggressive, but just be smart."

Both teams shot under 40 percent from the field, so the game came down to free-throw shooting. Illinois didn't get to the stripe in the first half and made only three of its six charity shots in the second. Penn State, meanwhile, went 20-for-27, including 14-for-17 in the second half.

Illinois forwards Erin Wigley and Angelina Williams caused problems all game with 14 points and 10 rebounds, and 15 points and nine rebounds, respectively.

"We had a fight a little bit today because Illinois played terrific," Portland said. "They were really aggressive, and they killed us on the boards in the first half. Our kids just held tough, and we went through that little spurt with 6 minutes and that just really made the difference when we made our foul shots."

Tanisha Wright was right behind Strom with 19 points, and her 10 in the first half kept her team in the game. Jenny Brenden also added eight points and seven rebounds, and Amanda Brown was a defensive presence with six blocks, all in the first half.

Strom only had two in the assist, rebound and steals categories, but did not turn the ball over and made up for her foul trouble by not picking up another the rest of the game.

And with three 3-pointers, she moved past Tiffany Longworth for third place all-time in the Penn State record book, hitting 178 for her career.

"She's pretty unbelievable," Portland said of Strom. "There was a moment I thought she was tired and everybody was like, 'Don't sub her, make her keep playing,' and that's the kind of kid she is."

Penn State kept pace with Ohio State, who won in Iowa yesterday as well. Ohio State still remains a half game ahead of Penn State in the conference standings, but the Lady Lions control their own destiny the rest of the way out.

They play the next two games at home against Wisconsin and Northwestern, and finish the season at Ohio State. If the Lady Lions win out they will have completed a perfect season at the Bryce Jordan Center, along with their third straight Big Ten regular season title.